Beverly Davenport Sypher is the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs at Purdue University and a Professor of Communication Studies.She is a model of elegance and grace, a gifted educator, researcher, and writer.
When she was my academic advisor at the University of Kansas, she was a popular professor and also a Dean for the College of Arts and Sciences. Even though her schedule was packed, she always took the time to work through any writing I submitted. There were no rubber stamps; she thoroughly reviewed, questioned and edited my research and writing. She invited me to phrase it more carefully, ask stronger questions, and consider other alternatives.
Before graduate school, I had been trained as a television journalist. Never one to waste words, TV taught me the power of a sound bite, the 30-second news story, and to write at the level of a fourth grader. Dr. Sypher demanded a different style, to say the least, and my writing and my thinking benefitted greatly.
Dr. Sypher's most lasting gift to me was to carefully guard my words and to be aware of what I say. I can be casual and loose with my language just to fill space or make another person feel more at ease. Dr. Sypher never let the sidebars go. She questioned what I said and made me do the same. Sloppy language indicates sloppy thinking and her vigilance helped me pay attention to both. Fourteen years later I still have a long way to go, but Dr. Sypher gave me my first map.
Thank you, Beverly.
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